(1) Filed of the invention
The present invention relates to a video tape recorder (to be abbreviated as VTR) with a monitor-equipped built-in camera, and more particularly to a VTR with a monitor-equipped built-in camera including a monitor for visually checking the picture recording condition of a subject and means for connecting between plural separate parts rotatably and electrically.
(2) Description of the Related Art
It is well known that various products of video tape recorders with a camera have been developed and brought into the market with the spread of home video apparatus in recent years. Therefore, first of all, consideration and review on these prior art VTR apparatuses will be made with regard to their advantages and drawbacks.
Initially, FIG. 1 shows an external appearance of a typical prior art VTR with a built-in camera, which includes a camera portion 101, a VTR portion 102 holding a removable tape cassette, a monochrome or color liquid crystal viewfinder 103 for a monitor, an eyepiece 104, a microphone 105 and a main body cabinet 106. The liquid crystal display panel used in viewfinder 103 is as small in its picture frame size as about 1 inch square, so that the image is adapted to be magnified through an ocular lens and observed from eyepiece 104.
Using such a small-sized liquid crystal display panel in viewfinder 103 presents an advantage that the liquid crystal display panel is less expensive. But this configuration suffers from the following drawbacks:
1) monitoring picture is hard to see because an operator must look the image through eyepiece 104 with only one eye;
2) an operator cannot monitor the recording condition while keeping his/her eye away from the camera body (or the operator must take a position to bring his/her eye close to the camera body for monitoring the recording condition);
3) the viewfinder is directed to provide an angular field of view to be taken for an operator only, more than one person cannot observe at the same time; and
4) if an operator tries to take a record of his or her own figure, this configuration requires another larger-sized monitor, but this is hard to realize.
Under such circumstances, in recent years there has been an earnest demand for a VTR with a built-in camera equipped with a monitor which enables an operator and observers, if any, to take a view of the pickup image at some distance without using an eyepiece.
However, in order to provide such a monitor that allows an operator to take a view of the real-time picture at some distance, in place of looking through an eyepiece, the frame size of the monitor becomes considerably large as compared to that of the view finder. In the prior art, the large size of the apparatus has resulted in difficulty in handling the apparatus.
As an example of such the apparatus, there has been disclosed a VTR with a monitor-equipped built-in camera in Japanese Patent Publication Hei 4 No.6154. This apparatus has a VTR portion and a monitor portion arranged integrally side by side, that is, the bottom of the monitor portion is arranged to fit to the VTR portion. A camera portion is supported rotatably on a longitudinal side of the thus integrated monitor/VTR portion having a shape of an elongated rectangular parallelepiped.
In this example, since the VTR portion and monitor portions are arranged side by side to form an elongated parallelepiped in order to make an integrated monitor/VTR portion, the monitor/VTR portion indispensably becomes large, thus limiting the miniaturization of the apparatus.
Further, the publication cited above does not take into account a self-image pickup mode in which an operator records a picture of his or her own image. If the apparatus is used to record the image of the operator by way of experiment, the picture displayed on the monitor portion is upside down or inverted, therefore, the apparatus is far from practical for use in the self-image pickup mode.
On the other hand, a prior art VTR with a built-in camera shown in FIG. 1 includes a rotary mechanism as to be a connecting device at a joint between a main body cabinet 106 and a viewfinder 103. Viewfinder 103 rotates with respect to main body cabinet 106 to be set at a desired rotation angle. Provided inside viewfinder 103 and main body cabinet 106 are electric circuits such as a signal processing circuit for effecting signal processing, therefore the joint for connecting between the two is composed of mechanically and electrically connecting means.
In the above case, the conventional connecting device is arranged as shown in FIG. 3. That is, a connecting portion 103a of viewfinder 103 is fit in with a leaf spring 202, and main body cabinet 106 and a plate metal 204 are fitted to the connecting portion 103a so as to be rotatable, and then a disc 205 is laid over the plate metal 204 and fixed to viewfinder 103 with screws 206, each of which is screwed through a through-hole 205a into a screw hole 103b. Thus, there is provided in main body cabinet 106 a mechanical connecting means allowing viewfinder 103 to rotate with respect to main body cabinet 106.
On the other hand, the electric connection is provided such that a flexible substrate 207 for electrically connecting means is inserted across a hollow portion 208 formed inside the Joint of the mechanically connecting means, and connected at its ends to the connectors (not shown) of respective portions.
Next, the operation of the thus constructed connecting device of the prior art will be described.
In the conventional connecting device, the viewfinder 103, leaf spring 202 and disc 205 united makes a rotational movement against main body cabinet 106 and plate metal 204 on the side of the main body of the VTR with a built-in camera as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. In the movement, the flexible substrate 207 across hollow portion 208 of the joint is twisted since it is connected at its ends to both connectors.
FIG. 6 is a schematic illustration of essential parts showing a rotation of flexible substrate 207 when it is twisted. In FIG. 6, as viewfinder 103 rotates, flexible substrate 207 rotates while being twisted.
In the conventional connecting device as constructed above, the flexible substrate is twisted by the rotation of viewfinder, if the rotation should be made at a large angle, the flexible substrate is also twisted largely. As a result, there would occur disconnection of the flexible substrate. In addition, the sagging portion caused by and required for the twist of the flexible substrate makes a large movement, so that the substrate interferes with, or comes into contact with the periphery, and this presents the dangers of making frictional noise and disconnection. Further, if additional lead wires and the like are provided in parallel with the flexible substrate, these elements interfere with one another greatly lowering their durability. To avoid these problems occurring, there must be provided a large clearance around the substrate and other elements, this opposes the demand of compactness.